Tuesday, November 5, 2013

The third best part of this job, after the fame and
fortune, is learning about unique, new foods; and this farinata video is a
perfect example! Until it was requested by a Vlad Kiperman (if that is his real
name), I had no idea this tasty, and dead simple recipe even existed. It’s so
good, I’m kind of sad the discovery came so late in life.

Farinata is nothing more than a simple garbanzo bean flour
batter, which is spiked with olive oil and salt, and baked in a very hot oven.
The surface gets crusty, the edges get crispy, and yet the inside stays moist
and sort of creamy. The texture is easy to explain, but the taste, not so much.

This is so simple and subtly flavored that it’s a kind of
hard to describe.
You may be familiar with the taste of garbanzo (aka chickpeas) in things like
hummus and falafel, but here it’s not combined with other strongly flavored
ingredients, and so you’re getting pure, un-cut bean. It’s going to be easier for me if you just make it and taste for yourself.

Like I said in the video, if you’ve never made this before, you
should probably try a plain version to get an idea of what this stuff is all
about, but after that, the sky's the limit. The options for add-ons to the batter,
as well as potential toppings are virtually limitless. I hope you give this a
try soon. Enjoy!

Pan Note: I know many will ask, so I’ll just say it now;
yes, you can use any oven-safe 10-inch pan to make this, but I have a tough
time believing it will come out as wonderfully textured as it would if you use
a cast-iron skillet. Putting the batter into a smoking hot pan seems to be one
of the big keys here.

Gluten-Free and Loving It

By the way, since this is made from a legume-based flour,
farinata is 100% gluten-free, which should make a small, but very passionate
group of foodwishers happy. My usually modus operandi when it comes to such
requests and questions is a referral to Allrecipe.com’s impressive, and extensive gluten-free recipe collection, or one of my many talented GF food
blogger friends.

Speaking of which, Shauna and Danny from Gluten-Free Girl (the Beyonce and Jay-Z of GF bloggers), have a new cookbook out called, Gluten-Free Girl Every Day. If you happen to swing that way, check it out. The recipes sound wonderful, the photos are gorgeous, and the book’s getting rave reviews.

I live in southern Piemonte just north of Liguria, the home of Farinata. Typically it's cooked in a wood oven in a special, low sided, heavy, copper pan tinned on the inside only. It's like an American "pizza pan" but much heavier, so your iron skillet method is the best bet if you don't have a genuine Farinata pan. Farinata should be at least 1/4 inch thick, but nor more than 1/2 inch. To respond to your readers, it should NOT be all crust because you lose the contrast between the crust and creamy part. I suppose you're the boss of your own Farinata, but around here additional ingredients include Rosemary OR diced onions OR Gorgonzola cheese OR bianchetti (tiny fish i.e. whitebait). Only ONE of these is used and it's always mixed into the batter. I don't see Farinata topped with anything other than pepper after it's cooked. Farinata is NOT pizza! I have also never seen a sweet version or a breakfast version. Suit yourself I suppose, but it won't be classic Farinata.

Chef, that is one darned nice iron skillet for a man who claims he doesn't like iron skillets. :)

And on a similar subject while I use my iron for most things I'm now using and loving my All-Clad stainless steel skillet. I learned it can be seasoned with coconut or palm oil similar to iron and it becomes more non-stick than my chemical non-stick pans which have now been kicked to the curb. I'm guessing you also knew that trick which is why you have successfully used your All-Clad stainless for years.

Hi Chef John!! I´m from Argentina, and here, this is called "Faina" and we eat it with pizza.. We just put a pizza slice on top of a "Faina" slice and eat them together. Best served with cold beer. Perfect friday night. LOVE YOUR BLOG. So thank you!! :D

Not really related to the Farinata, and not sure how far in advance you plan recipes for the blog. HOWEVER as I'm sure you're aware, Thanksgivukkah (Thanksgiving+Hannukah), is a literally once in a lifetime culinary event that is looming large. It only comes once EVERY 70,000 years! Don't you think you should commemorate the first Thanksgivukkah in human history with a Thanksgivukkah themed recipe?

Oh! Chef John. Thanks so much for this recipe. I happened to have chickpea flour sitting in my cupboard un-opened for 2 months. I tried the recipe last night and it was awesome. I wish I could send you a photo of the one I made. I added a bit of chilli flakes to mine for some heat.

This is excellent! We ate it plain the first time. Yesterday I made it again for a cocktail party and served it with a chunky tomato and sausage sauce on the side (and pesto on the side for vegetarians.). Both went really well, but it was amazing with a smear of pesto. Thanks Chef John - your recipes are staples in our house!

Hi - i heard there are two types of garbanzo bean flour. One of them is made from uncooked chickpease - I think this is called besan flour. It is awful in baking but good for frying and as a thickening agent in soups and sauces.. Did you use the cooked version of garbanzo bean flour in this recipe?

Chef John, thank you so much for this recipe. I just baked it and it came out perfect, so much flavor and very crispy. I couldn't stop eating it. What I like most about it is you don't taste the bean in it. You know what I mean? When I made pancakes with it, I don't like the gummy texture and the very strong bean flavor. With this one, everything is just perfect. Now this will become my only flatbread recipe. I love you chef John. Muahhhh.

Loved it. Went with the rosemary, salt, and pepper exactly as the recipe says, and the farinata came out great! Ate half of it myself, but the whole thing was gone by the end of the night. I was surprised because I usually don't like the crust of things, but the crust was my favorite part. Trying to think of what extra things I'll put on it next time.